Fairy Tail Origins: White Eclipse
by Tyoung32
Summary: The origin of the guild that rivaled Fairy Tail.
1. Chapter 1

Fairy Tail Origins: White Eclipse

Chapter 1

Panting. He ran through the rainy city known as Crocus. He continued look back behind him, continuously noting the group of men chasing after him. It was dark; dark enough to handicap one's vision. As his feet splashed through the muddy water upon the grounds of the Crocus streets, one was actually deep enough to cause the young boy to trip against the edge of the rain covered pothole. He fell face first, his raven hair now covering his blue eyes as he tried to push himself off the ground. He looked back once again, this time towards his right leg, noticing his ankle already beginning to swell. A sprain, which felt more like a break at this time pained the young male. Before he could rise to his feet, four men surrounded him, all laughing in a low, near sadistic tone. "Where my dough, Volver?" One of the shadowy figures called out. "You wanted to gamble with the big boys, now you gotta pay up or suffer."

"Lets just beat it out of him boss!" Another male stated. He was the first to cause the kid physical harm as he slammed a kick into the boy's abdomen. "Volver" rolled over from the kick, now laying on his back, struggling to keep his eyes open duly from the fact that the rain continued to drop into his retinas. Another male, and extremely tall one grabbed him by the ankle, causing him to let out a shrill cry. He now hung upside down as the bulky male grinned. "Come on Reve. You placed your bets and lost. Pay the money or get stuffed into the concrete."

Nearly blacking out from the pain on his ankle alone, Reve slowly lifts his head to face the giant man. He then lifts his hand, and bends all of fingers except one, flipping the giant man off. "Tch! Stubborn little!"

Just like a rag doll, the giant man slammed the gunslinger into the ground, shoulder first into the street. The last of the group began searching his pockets for jewel, coming up empty. "He didn't even have money to get with man! Lets kick his ass!"

A jumping later, the men walked away, leaving the boy, Reve Volver out cold in the rain.

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"Try it again!"

"Fire make: Tornado!"

From the red haired, oranges tipped male's hands, a small tornado made of flames shot through a magic seal, spinning only a couple of yards before harmlessly dispersing.

"You'll get it." The woman spoke. She too also had red and orange hair, resembling that of a fire. She stood with her arms crossed, her orange irises gazing back at the copper ones the boy was graced with. "I'm trying.." The young boy pathetically muttered.

"Keep your head up Kuro." She spoke again. "You'll get it eventually. This is why I started you with a heavy spell, so the others will come easy once you get this down."

"But Mary..." Kuro retorted. "I... I want orange eyes!"

"What!?" Mary gave Kuro a confused expression. "You already died the ends of your hair kid! What more do you need? And why so random!?"

Kuro slid back into the fire make's stance. "If I can make a full blown tornado, then I get orange contacts!"

"I didn't agree to that!" Mary yelled, but it was too late.

"Fire make: TORNADO!" Kuro slammed his hands together, thrusted them outward and then...the same result happened. A small harmless fire funnel that easily dispersed. Mary let out a sigh of relief, then laughed as Kuro began to snivel. "Stop that kid, you're embarrassing. Look, tomorrow, we're going into town so we can work on your strength. So get some rest okay?"

Kuro nodded, and he and Mary then walked back towards the small hillside cabin they stayed in. No bigger than a two room loft.

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"BWAHAHAHA! Pass that beer this way if you're not gonna drink it!"

Bacchus was seen sitting at the Magnolian bar, downing drink after drink with his fellow mages. With their laughter filling the air, they caught the attention of a young male, brunette with earth colored eyes. He watched from the other side, watching the young Bacchus fill his body with alcohol, yet still be able to stand. "That guy is a tank.." The young male stated. For some off reason, Bacchus caught whim of the statement and turns to the young boy. "Hey! What's your name kid!?"

"Huh!? Who me!?" He pointed to himself, and looked around to realize he was alone, so he then spoke up. "J-Jack Royal, sir!"

"Jack Royal!? Now that name is Wild!"

"FOUR!" The other mages joined in, following up with laughter and more devouring of alcohol. "Come over here kid. You're fifteen right?"

Jack nodded, and then hopped down from his seat to walk over. "Just turned.." He stated as he took Yaegar's seat next to Bacchus. "Just turned!? That's also Wild!"

"FOUR!"

Jack, startled at first, looked around at the celebrating mages, and then back to the drunken falcon. "Can I ask something?"

"What's that kid!?"

Jack hesitated, and then spoke aloud. "You guys are always here drinking. Why is that?

Bacchus immediately belched out a laugh from Jack's question. "IT'S BECAUSE WE'RE WILD!"

"FOUR!" This time, even Royal himself joined with his petite frame among what seemed like giants. Bacchus took another mug of beer. "By the way, where you headed?"

Jack shrugged, and then looked at his bag that Bacchus gestured to. "I don't know.."

"You don't!? Now that kinda adventure-"

"Is Wild!?" Jack yells in question, interrupting Bacchus.

"FOUR!" Everyone joined in unison. More laughter ensued for the rest of the night inside that bar, until the bad owner had to force the inhabitants to finally leave.

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"Sidney, can I ask you a question?" A young, very young, brunette/green eyed male with oversized glasses sat on the ground as he watched another older male, handsome features and black hair and eyes hang upside down from a tree.

"What is it, Zalen?" The older one replied. As he hung upside down, listening to his brother as he began doing crunches, reaching up to his knees with each rep and quietly counting to himself.

"Why do you all this training, when you haven't even picked a magic yet? You're almost an adult.."

Sidney finished his rep, and dropped from the tree branch, dusting himself off. He the smiled towards his brother, ruffling his hair. "And you're barely a teen. But I haven't picked a magic to study, because none seem right. I want the best, I want one.../that speaks to the soul/ you know?"

Zalen shook his head. "No, I don't. I picked mine already, and like you said: /We are Castles. It's tradition that we leave home really early and become strong mages."/

Sidney froze for a second. "You actually listen huh?"

"I have another question." Zalen said, looking up to the night sky.

"And what's that, shrimp?"

"If we were supposed to leave home so early, why did you just leave this year?"

Sidney turned his head, and began waking over to their bags. He picked them up, and then turned to Zalen with a smile. "Enough questions for now okay? Lets just keep moving for now. We need to find a place for shelter soon."

Zalen stood up, and ran over to Sidney, grabbing his bag and hoisting it over his shoulder. "Alright! Are we going to pick a guild soon!?"

"Soon." Sidney replied with a smile.

"How about Fairy Tail?" Zalen asked as they continued walking along.

"Fairy Tail? Nah, that's too cliche. I was thinking, Lamia Scale, or even Sabertooth if we're lucky."

"Sabertooth!" Zalen yelled as he hopped up and down. His actions caused Sidney to laugh as he pushed his raven colored hair out of the way. "We'll see Zalen. You can't just walk into a guild and be a member. But we'll see."

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"Mom! Moooom!" Waiston slid down the icy mountain, all the way down to the floor. He then ran inside a frozen cavern. The shirtless boy's icy blue hair was tied back into a tail. His yellow eyes navigated him through the cavern as he sprinted in a high speed manner, taking specific turns through the cave. "Mom! I'm calling you! Tunundra!" He slid down a crevice into a main section of the cavern, and the continued on into what he knew as the main den. Once there, he stopped, noticing a jacket sitting on a raised area. Clipped to the jacket, was a note. Waiston walked over and picked up the note to begin reading it the best he could.

{Waiston, I'm sorry, but I have to leave you. Thank you for allowing me to raise such a noble, crazy young boy like yourself. Now that I'm gone, I want you to take what I taught you about Frozen Dragon slaying, and become a strong mage okay? Do that for me. I made this jacket for you, out of some of my dragon scales so I'll always stay with you. I may be gone physically, but I'll always be with you in spirit. I love you,

Tunundra.}

Though he only understood some of the words, he understood enough, and the Frozen Dragon Slayer began to shake, tears rolling down his face as he somewhat crumpled the paper in his hands. He then picked up the jacket, and instead of putting it on, he cradled it, sobbing into the dragon scaled jacket continuously.

"Tunundra...don't leave me.."

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"He walked alone, staff in hand as he made his up the snowy mountains of Fiore. He then stabbed his staff into the snow, a small smile plastered on his face. He ran a hand through his grayish hair, staring at the broken down cabin in front of him.

"A few touch ups, and it'll be home sweet home away from the world. Calium you've done it again. Rent free!" He smiled brightly, aiming his raven colored hues at the lack of scenery. "No one will ever bother me up here.

/I can't wait to finally be able to rest for the remainder of my years./"


	2. Chapter 2

Fairy Tail Origins: White Eclipse

Chapter 2

"Is he awake yet!?" A loud, feminine voice roared from the kitchen. Reve stirred around on a sofa, slowly fluttering open his eyes. "Well he is now mother." Another feminine voice called. The second Reve awoke, an older female adult, brunette, quickly hugged him, petting the top of his head in sympathy as she whimpered. "Reve honey are you okay?!" Reve sat up as the woman continued, placing a hand on her arm as he gathered himself. The woman then gently pushed him back down into the sofa. "Oh no child! You're not moving anywhere with that ankle!"

"Huh?" Reve looked over to his foot, noticing it elevated and in wraps. He then took note of the female sitting beside him on the couch, smiling back at him. At that time, the older female got up from the sofa and walked into the kitchen. "Krissa. How did I?"

"Parents were out late again, and found you blacked out on the street. Daddy was livid." She giggled at the thought. "But now here you are." She patted his leg, slowly shaking her head. "You shouldn't gamble you know." Reve blinked at the young brunette. He then slowly smiled as well as he gazed back at her green orbs. "Yeah, sorry-"

"You say that all the time. Don't apologize if you're not going to stop, Reve." The tone in Krissa's voice was more than evident that she was upset at Reve. She stood from her seat, and began walking to the other side of the room. "I swear, I'm going to get grey hairs before my own mother if you keep this up!"

Reve didn't say a word, instead he continued to grin as Krissa walked back over to the couch with a water bottle in hand. She dropped it on the cushion beside him, Reve catching it on the bounce. "Okay, okay." He feigned an annoying tone. He took a swig from the bottled water, and then closed the cap once again before placing it on the floor. "Geez you can be a pain sometimes. I don't know what to do with you~."

She immediately puffed her cheeks in anger, her face taking on a red tinge. She then slapped Reve's hurt ankle purposely, causing him to yelp in pain. His body jolted in response. "You're impossible!" Krissa yelled back. "Everything doesn't need a smart response!"

"Chill out!" Reve yelled back. He moved around to attempt to dull the pain. Krissa couldn't help but bare her teeth, feeling frustrated at Reve, as if it was a daily thing. "Look! I can't keep worrying about you all the time! Promise me you won't do this again! Now!"

Reve raised a brow, taken back by her tone. He curled his lip, but then answered her. "You need to relax."

"That's not a promise Reve!" Krissa fussed again, gripping the cushion to the sofa. "You're always hurt! Just stop getting into things!"

He huffed in annoyance. "You're right, I'm always getting hurt. I need to fix that..."

"What do you mean?"

After the pain died down, Reve sat up, and wrapped his arms around the young brunette, catching her off guard. Her face slowly turned red as she too wrapped her arms around Reve. "Thank you. For taking care of me."

Krissa nodded, uttering a noise to signify she couldn't muster a response with words in the moment.

In the kitchen, the older brunette watched along with a dark grey haired male. "They're so precious." The male said.

The older woman fanned herself, smiling genuinely as she did so. "I can't wait until she turns her from a Reiss into a Volver."

"Whoa now honey, long way to go before that. Reve is like a second son, but I won't even leave them alone until they're adults no mam."

"Oh stop!" She playfully slapped Mr. Reiss on the chest, turning into a hug. "We married young remember? I'm sure they'll turn our like us, if not then even better~!"

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"Sidney. I'm tired..." Zalen whined, pushing his glasses up to correctly fix his face. The two boys continued walking through what seemed like the endless plains of Fiore. Sidney stopped, and looked around. Without a map he tried to decipher which way was the way to the famous Sabertooth guild. He then came to the realization that he was lost. {I don't want to scare Zalen, so we'll stop here.}

"Okay, squirt. We'll stop here for the night, alright?"

Zalen nodded while rubbing his right eye with a balled up hand. His drooped off his face afterwards, causing him to have to fix them once again. Sidney then placed his bag down, and pulled out two sleeping bags, one for the both of them. Zalen quickly crawled into his and passed out. Sidney blinked. "What a trooper. At first I thought he was just complaining, but he was tired the whole time... He couldn't take anymore." Sidney couldn't help but smile at his brother's efforts. He then slid into his own bag, slowly drifting off as well.

Hours past until Sidney felt a couple of rain drops fall from the sky. He awoke, and looked over to Zalen. As the rain began to pick up, Sidney came to a conclusion. He slid out of his sleeping bag, and covered Zalen's head with it to stop the rain from falling on the young male. Sidney then laid back down, curled into a ball with no shelter as the rain picked up more, now a heavy downpour. He did what he could to endure, shivering as he looked back to his little brother, smiling as he noticed the rain unable to touch the brunette. "S-s-sleep well, Zalen."

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Quatro Cerberus and Jack stood outside the now closed bar. Bacchus patted Jack on the top of the head as they began to walk off. "Alright kid, it's been wild!"

"FOUR!"

"But we're off!"

"Wait!" Jack exclaimed. "I want to come with! I want to join the guild!"

Bacchus stopped, and then looked at his fellow guild mates. He then rubbed the back of his, hiccuping once before turning to Jack. "No you don't kid, you're on an adventure." He replied. He the walked back towards Jack, patting his head once again. "Don't let one night of excitement run you off of your course alright? Go wherever you were about to set off to."

"But I don't know where I'm going! Quatro Cerberus is the answer!" Jack retorted. "Let me in!"

Bacchus sighed. "Look I really want to, but everyone here agrees, you didn't plan on joining us at first. Enjoy that life of yours kid, continue to explore."

"But..!" Jack's lip began to quiver...he was denied his first guild request. "I thought you guys were wild!"

"FOU-"

"NOT THERE YOU NUMBSKULLS!" Bacchus comically yelled, cutting his guild mates off.

Bacchus turned around to see Jack running off, past the Magnolian outskirts. He sighed once more, and then shrugged. "He'll be okay. Hopefully he'll become wild enough to make me regret that decision."

Jack ran, a few tears running down his eyes until he he tripped over his own feet, landing on the grassy ground. As he hit the ground, from his waist side, a deck of magic cards fell from his pockets, scattering all over the earth. He continued to snivel as he picked the cards up one by one, finally breaking down before picking up the last one. "I'll show him!" He cried. "I'll show all of them! I'll become a mage somewhere else. And I'll request to fight them in the games! And I'll win! I'll beat him so bad, he'll go sober! And I'll be the one drinking with guild mates! I..." He couldn't muster another word as he sat back up, shakily picking up the last card; a card that held the picture of an earth plateau. He stared at it, and then placed it on top of his deck before picking himself up for the long journey ahead of him.

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"Does it not worry you how fast Reve can heal?" Krissa whispered to her father. Outside, Reve was running away from a little boy in a playful manner the boy finally catching up to him, and tackling the male to the ground.

"Now now, Krissa. Reve is a special boy. And if he can heal that fast, then that'll make him a better protector for you."

Krissa immediately turned red faced at the comment, electing not to respond to it as she stared at her feet embarrassingly. She then looked back up at the two boys in the front yard. "Don't hurt him Ralo. His accident was just yesterday."

Ralo, the little brown haired boy hopped off of Reve after hearing the statement. He then "helped" Reve to his feet with the pull of an arm, even though Reve was really doing all of the work. "He's fine, Krissa." Reve said with a smile, dusting himself off.

"But your ankle."

"This ankle?" Reve grinned, and then performed a backflip where he stood; he and Ralo both laughing afterwards.

"...Show off."

Reve then ran over to Krissa and Mr. Reiss. His happy demeanor was slowly turning into a serious one as he began to speak. "So me and your dad talked about something last night."

Immediately, a million thoughts focusing on one concept flooded Krissa as she stood wide eyed. "What's...what's that?"

Reve gave a sigh, still smiling as he grabbed Krissa's hand.

"Krissa..."

{Heart racing.}

"I've decided..."

{Red tinge as her eyes widen.}

Reve smiled brightly, eyes closed as he gave her the news. "To become a mage!"

A long silence fell over her, and after that silence, in the next instance a loud smack was heard. Krissa held her follow through for a bit as Reve's head jolted to the right. Even Mr. Reiss stood in shock as Krissa stood there, in front of Reve. Reve turned back to her, seemingly emotionless as he slowly let go of her hand, and began walking off.

"Don't come back either!" Her shaky voice called out as Reve made his way down the street. He rolled up his sleeves as he walked off, not even responding to her. Krissa walked back inside, her father following her as Ralo stood there, dumbfounded.

"Krissa come back here!"

"No, this is your fault too!" She barked back at her father, tears already slowly falling. "You approved of this! He's always getting hurt! How is becoming a mage going to fix that! He's just going to create more enemies! Stronger people to hurt him!"

Mr. Reiss stopped as Krissa made her way upstairs, closing the door behind her.

"I didn't think she would react like that..."

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"ACHOO!"

Sidney sniffed heavily, trying to keep the contents from his nose from falling. He wiped his nose with a cloth as he and Zalen continued on, the dawn sun shining over them. "How are you sick, Sidney? Did you not cover up well enough?"

Sidney smiled as he looked at his little brother, patting him on the head and ruffling his hair. "I guess not, squirt. I'll try better next time. So lets just...ACHOO!...lets just keep moving until we make it to Sabertooth."

Zalen shook his head and then reached for his bag that Sidney was carrying. "They're a prestigious guild. They won't accept us if you're sneezing!" Looking through his bag, he found what he was looking for. His last cup of fruit juice. "Drink it, it helps you feel better!"

Sidney shook his head. "That's your last one, Zalen. Keep it incase you get sick."

"But you're sick now! So drink! We're almost to Sabertooth right? We can stock up again once we get into town!"

Sidney sighed, he didn't have the heart to tell Zalen that they were lost. "Yeah...almost there. Just...over that mountain."

Sidney pointed towards what seemed like a snowy mountain range. "If anything, I can use the mountain peak to find out where we are.." He thought to himself.

"Okay then here! Before you get influenza!"

"Only you say influenza."

"It's the correct term!"

Sidney laughed a bit, and then took the cup, drinking the contents inside. Once finished, he placed the cup back into the bag and continued walking along with Zalen as they headed for the snowy mountains.

Miles later, Sidney held Zalen behind him, as he found themselves surrounded. He narrowed his eyes as three Vulcans circled around them. "Stay close Zalen."

"Right!" Zalen nodded as the vulcans gave out their creepy laughs. Without warning, the first Vulcan lunged towards the two, and swung a right fist forward. Sidney used it's momentum, and flipped the Vulcan over, slamming it into the ground. The beast scrambled to it's feet as another one rushed them. Zalen held out a hand, and from the ground, a wooden wall appeared, shooting upward. The vulcan broke through with one punch, but as it did, Sidney and Zalen were no longer in their previous location. The Vulcan then turned right into a right hand, more wood breaking apart as Zalen slammed a right hook into the vulcan's jaw with his wooden encased hands. The Vulcan slid across the ground and laid on it's back, dizzy. Before Zalen could celebrate, the third beast grabbed the young boy by the arms, lifted him and began running off. "Let go! Sidney!"

"Zalen!" Sidney tried to chase, but the last Vulcan standing cuts him off. Sidney slides to a stop, snarling as he kept tabs on his little brother's direction. The Vulcan swung down a hammer fist, but Sidney leaped away, and slammed an uppercut into the Vulcan's chin. Before the beast could react, Sidney the slammed a knee into the back of his school. The Vulcan fell over, unconscious. Sidney then quickly took off in a sprint, easily catching up to the Vulcan who looked back in fear. Realizing it was pointless, the Vulcan quickly dropped Zalen and began waving in surrender while backing away from an enraged Sidney. The beast then turned around to run, only to run into a wooden wall. It comically fell over, passed out. "Are you okay?" Sidney asked his brother as he checked for wounds.

"Sorry, I let my guard down.." Zalen replied. Sidney smiled, and ruffled his hair, giving Zalen a genuine smile. "Relax, squirt! I'm just glad you're okay! Besides, you were awesome!"

Zalen's eyes lit up from the praise as they began walking back towards their destination. "Really!?"

"Yeah! The way you socked that one Vulcan! Amazing!"

The two continued their celebration as they moved forward. "Hey Zalen.."

"Yeah Sidney?"

"I love you bro, okay?"

"You're gross."

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A small unknown city. Jack entered just in time to what seems like a small festival. He walked around the small yet busy streets of this city, hands on the straps of his bag. His stomach then began growling as he walked on. "Too bad I'm broke.." He then stopped as he heard a man speak loudly. "We need one more person for the drinking challenge! Must be fifteen or older! Grand prize is ten thousand jewel!"

Jack quickly ran over, jumping into the empty seat.

"Are you fifteen, kid?" The male asked. He raised his hand with a smile. "Fifteen and one week exactly!"

"Very well! Contestants are you ready!? Begin!" The man threw his hand down. In front of Jack were ten mugs. The rules that the first to finish all ten without vomiting wins. He lifted the first. "Wild, right?" He then threw back the mug, chugging down the alcohol as if he was Bacchus himself. By the eighth one, he began to waver, but he continued on as he was the first one to finish, and well ahead of the second place contestant. The crowd applauded as Jack wavered around with his hands up. "Who is this kid?" One man asked.

"I don't know, but he's amazing!" Another yelled. The host handed him a sack of jewel and Jack carried on triumphantly down the street, turning the corner drunkenly.

Later that night, Jack woke up from his drunken sleep, finding himself in a back alley on top of trash bags. He yawned, and then held his head in dire pain. "Ow! What is this?" He was experiencing his first hangover. He closed his eyes, but the pain didn't stop. "Ugh...I'm still hungry too."

Royal stood up, his blurry vision slowly correcting as he blinked continuously. Once fixed, he looked around for his bag of jewel. It was nowhere to be found. He began a panic as he looked around, patting himself down in the process. "No...no no no! I just... I just had it, I remember! I..."

He crawled through the garbage he slept on, one of the bags splitting open and falling on him. He ignored it for now as he continued to look for his bag of jewel. He then finally came to the conclusion. He was robbed. Jack stared at the trash infested ground, tears returning as tried to hold in his frustrations. "I won that...fair and square. Why...?"

He then did the only thing he could do with no money. Jack curled up into a ball, and held back his cries as he tried to ignore the frustrating hangover that plagued him.

[ "I never wanna see him again."]

["It's just over this mountain."]

["I won that fair and square...why?"]


	3. Chapter 3

Fairy Tail Origins: White Eclipse

Chapter 3

"Mary this is boring!" Kuro whined out as he walked beside his mother figure and mentor. The two mages made their way into the closest unnamed town, Mary picking up a small basket as they walked through the market place.

"Be quiet, kid. We won't even be here long. Now, go find your noodles, while I get the rest of our groceries."

Kuro began running, only to have Mary stop him once more. "Kuro! Two packs, and that's it. We can't afford the usual this month."

Kuro waved, and then continued to run off towards the pasta stands.

Mary watched the young boy run off, and then turned to continue towards the nearest fruit stand.

The young fire haired Kuro skipped over towards the pasta stands, looking for his usual packs. Examining the stand he currently stood at, he spotted his favorite flavor, and immediately reached for it with a joyous expression. He picked it up, and with a smile, shuffled down the table line to look for one more pack before heading back to Mary.

Seconds later, a large, stocky male with a scraggly beard appeared beside Kuro. He turned his attention towards the table that the fire maker just left, noticing the empty slot of noodles. "Hey! Who took the last of the chicken flavored!"

Kuro was too busy shuffling through more of the pasta to recognize the giant male, yet the giant recognized the fire maker, holding what he was looking for. "Hey runt!" The male yelled in a sudden outburst. Everyone around the stand stopped immediately, and cautiously stepped away from the stand; not from the fear of the man's built. There was something about him that kept everyone away. Everyone but Kuro that was as he turned around with an innocent yet confused expression. The fire make student blinked a few times, then smiled. "Hey!"

The larger male snarled. "Is this a joke to you!?"

Kuro blinked again, unsure of how to answer. "...Were we playing one?" He blinked again, and then winced as the older male grabbed Kuro by the collar, lifting him off of his feet and to his eye level. "You know who's stand this is!? It's mine! And I want those noodles right there! So hand them over, or suffer the consequences!" All while the burly sized male made his threat, Kuro continuously flailed his legs screaming for the man to let him go. "So you're not gonna hand it over huh!? Very well!" He bared his teeth once more, and then turned it into a grin as he raised Kuro over his head. He was about to slam the young male into the ground. That action was halted, as a fist slammed into the man's jaw, causing him to let go of Kuro as he crashed into a wooden table in the stand. Everyone was speechless as Mary stood there, rotating her wrist with an angered look. "Picking on a kid? My student at that? You picked the wrong ones today, ugly."

As she finished her declaration, a group of shady looking men all slowly stood up from where they were sitting. Mary and Kuro took notice as they began to slowly surround them. Kuro ran over to Mary, but was quickly grabbed by one of the men. "Stop grabbing me!" He yelled, throwing weak punches towards the male who easily held him down. Mary turned to see Kuro in trouble once again, but as she did, the male she struck, slammed an elbow to the back of her head. Mary fell face first into the ground, groaning in pain as she struggled upward. "You don't know who you're messing with here huh?" The burly man spoke once again.

"Tell em boss!" The skinny man who was holding Kuro down spoke. At once, they all rolled up their sleeves, showing a signature mark on their arms. "Mage's Trap. That's right, we're mafia mages, and you're in our territory. Why do you think no one is helping you." He and the other mafia members began to belch out a laugh as Mary made her way to her feet, snarling lowly as she stood up against the male. "So now, we're going to pummel you and your kid over there."

{He's not my kid.}

"Wait..." Mary panted, holding the back of her head, hunched over a bit. "I'll pay whatever I have...or take whatever beating is coming alone. Just don't touch the kid...please..."

Kuro's eyes widened from Mary's plea as the male walked towards his teacher. He held his hand out, and Mary looked at it. A relieved expression came over her as she dug through her pocket, and handed him her wallet. He took her entire purse. "Forty thousand jewel? Nice." The burly man grinned, and then used his oversized hands to grab Mary by the face, and slam her through a wooden table, back first. Suddenly, that relieved expression was gone, as Mary laid there on top of the broken table.

"Mary!" Kuro yelled in horror, struggling to break free. It was no use, as the man picked her up again, and tossed her into the ground. Mary made it to her hands and knees, but that's as far as she got as the male slammed a kick into her abdomen. The force of the kick sent her into a stack of wooden crates. "Fight back!" Kuro yelled, tears quickly forming and falling from his eyes as he was forced to watch his teacher and mother figure take such a beating. "Sh-shut up Kuro...and stay put..." Mary sat up against the wall, holding her right arm as she shivered in pain. She winced, only keep one eye open as she saw a blurry figure walk towards her. "Oh? You're not hurt? Well then let me help ya!" Once again, the mafia member slammed an open palm into Mary's face, slamming her head into the concrete wall she leaned on. In that instant, Mary was out cold, her head leaving a small crater in the wall as she slumped over unconsciously. "MARY!" Kuro continued to struggle, finally breaking free due to the larger male snapping his fingers, causing the others to follow him away from the scene. Kuro slid over to his teacher, and immediately began shaking her, the tears falling continuously as he tried to wake her. "Mary! Wake up please! Mary!"

Finally, Kuro broke down, crying over his teacher as everyone around them did their best to ignore the two mages, going about their everyday business.

Finally out of the icy tundra that he called home, Waiston Tunundra continued his slow depressing walk westward, unsure of where to go. The only thing on his mind was where his dragon mother, Tunundra could of went to. With no clues he continued on, self loathing as he shuffled along the now dry plains of Fiore. Hours later, Waiston came across a man and a woman. The male was tall and built while the woman was of average figure. They both were sitting in their own carriage, devious grins plastered on their faces as they watched Waiston walk towards them, as if the young dragon slayer was their next victim. "Hey kid. Where you headed?" The male asked. Waiston looked up towards the two as he passed, shrugged, and then kept walking. "Hey!" The woman exclaimed. "No need to walk away. You look alone, have you eaten?" Waiston shrugged again. The woman grew a bit irritated, yet the male kept his cool as he hopped off his carriage in front of Waiston, and showed him a bowl of ramen. Waiston looked at the bowl, and then back at the smiling male who held it.

Now inside the carriage, Waiston had just finished the contents of his bowl. He then bowed, after sighing in relief. "Thank you..." The young slayer said as he bowed. The woman hummed. "You seemed really hungry! That was three bowls just now."

Waiston nodded. "So why are you guys out here in the middle of nowhere?"

The man smirked. He could see Waiston's eyes become heavy. "We're rare item hunters. We like to collect and sell things that you won't find in many places."

"Oh?" Waiston's only response as he began to yawn a deep yawn. "Man, what was...in that soup..?"

This time, the woman began to grin, absolutely sure that Waiston was just about to incoherent to properly respond. "We saw that jacket of yours. It's made of dragon scales right?"

Waiston nodded, unable to put two and two together as he slowly laid backwards, his eyes nearly shut. "Well, that's rare...and we'll be taking it."

Hours later, Waiston awoke in the grass where the carriage once was. He sat up, rubbing his eyes as he looked around. "Huh? What happened?" He yawned once more, and then attempted to slide his hands into his jacket pockets as he stood. He stood up completely, now in a panic as he desperately looked around. "...It wasn't a dream..! Those two stole my jacket!"

Waiston quickly leaned his head back, and began sniffing the air, hoping that their scent was still lingering even after all this time. It took him a minute, but he finally caught on to something, and took off in a dead sprint towards the north. All he could see was mountains over the horizon as he ran towards the two rare item hunters, following their scent.

"Stop crying kid, damn. You're not even the one hurt." Mary was awake, and the two of them were back home. She was sitting up on the bed, unwrapping the bandages that Kuro horribly placed on her just to rewrap herself expertly in her own.

"But...! It was my fault! I'm sorry! Now we're broke and we don't have much food left and you're hurt!"

"Not gonna tell you again, Kuro. Shut up." Mary winced in pain as she finished wrapping her left arm. She bit off the tape and tossed the roll off the bed as she stood up. She then looked at the sniveling Kuro, and sighed. "Look, if you feel so bad, go... go run around the shack one hundred times for punishment."

Kuro nodded, and then ran out the house, now running around it in a sprint to push himself for the punishment he believed he deserved. As he did, Mary watched from the window. She winced again, holding her arm from the injuries. "I'm gonna have to figure out how to feed us for another month.. I guess natural things will have to do. It'll be a good diet for him." She sighed as she placed her chin on her hand, continuing to watch Kuro as he already became tired from full sprinting around the shack twenty times. He panted, hands on his knees as he gasped for air. He then looked at Mary in the window. She twirled her finger, signifying that he was no where near done. He nodded while still panting, and then began taking off again, this time jogging instead of sprinting. "That kid. I have no idea why I let him stay with me and learn fire make. I'm usually never this nice. But..."

"Finished with the repairs!" Calium stood in front of the small house with a comical smile. His fingers were taped, signifying his inexperience with tools. "It took all ten of my fingers, but I fixed this place up! Finally I get to enjoy my peace and solitude! Twelve snowy mountains all to myself!" His ear to ear smile was followed with a light chuckle as he walked inside. "And they said Calium, you're too old to be on your own! No matter how strong you are, you'll die out there! Well look at me now!" He walked inside, then sat down on his single chair in front of his fireplace. He placed his staff down, and struck a match, throwing it in the pile of wood that he stacked inside the fireplace. The blaze was lit, and the elder rocked back and forth in his chair as he watched the endless snowfall from his lone window.

"Peace."


End file.
